Indonesia Free School Meals Linked To Mass Food Poisoning Cases

According to the BBC, around 2,000 students and teachers across Indonesia have fallen ill with food poisoning over the past three days in cases linked to the government's free school meals programme. In the latest incident, 777 people became unwell after eating meals at a high school in Rembang, Central Java, while 752 students and 25 teachers reported symptoms after lunch on Wednesday at the school in Lasem. The school has sent nearly 1,200 pupils and 95 staff home, and several people were taken to hospital. The suspected outbreak followed another case in which 730 people fell ill after eating MBG meals at an Islamic boarding school in Sidoarjo, East Java, on Tuesday, a local health official said. Hundreds more have been affected in suspected food poisoning cases linked to the programme this week, including at several schools in Tana Toraja, South Sulawesi. Local authorities are investigating, and food samples are being tested for possible contamination. The head of the food distribution unit in Lasem apologized and said it would conduct a comprehensive review of its operations.